Bakery Tables: Words with the Artists

Three Facts about Jon:

– His favorite fish to catch is the Bluegill.

– His first words were “ET phone home.”

– He has broken six bones and each accident occurred on a Sunday.

A Few Words on the Table:

The skull table uses acrylic paint. There are several layers beneath the top most and I used a comb to expose the earlier orange looking one. A bakery seems an unlikely spot for a skull, an unwelcoming, foreboding presence. I tried to convey a sense of playfulness and comfort in the color choice. Skulls have significance in my life because their image evokes in me a calm, meditative state.

Three Tidbits about Tina:

– She is a certified EKG technician.

– When she was 8 years old she was an extra on Unsolved Mysteries.

– She owns a Hello Kitty toaster.

A Few Words on the Table:

Pizza.

Aside from it being my favorite food, pizza became my inspiration for my table. The Garbage in particular. Because of its many ingredients, the way it is constructed is synonymous with the Medici. An abundance of people from different backgrounds, talents, likes, cultures, cities, ages, etc… all brought together to make up the restaurant, employees and patrons alike.

Having been a patron prior to working at the Medici on and off for 12 years, I have seen and met people that visited, frequented, and worked at this neighborhood joint. I wanted to represent that in my table. The gargoyle symbolizes the restaurant itself, and the layering of varying textures, beads, and hues represents all who have walked through the front door.

Info on Will:

– He works at the Medici.

– As a server.

– For two years.

A Few Words on the Table:

Two of my friends were invited to enter a show called “Concrete Waves” at the Rumble Arts Center in Chicago. The works in the show were done on skateboards. My friends, Ulyssess and Gerardo, decided to wood-burn rather than paint their boards as all the others had. After seeing the finished product, I decided I was going to use the same technique for the table. When I think of the Medici I think of the Renaissance era and who better than the iconic Cosimo de’ Medici to represent this name and time.

Three Lines about Liz:

– She has moved sixteen times.

– She went to the state science fair in eighth grade.

– She once sprained her ankle doing a do-si-do.

A Few Words on the Table:

I am more of a photographer than a painter. A gracious co-worker, Kelly, modeled for me by smashing her face up against a bakery window as I snapped the pictures the table painting would be based on. This table was loosely inspired by Lewis Carroll’s “Through the Looking-Glass.” I have worked at the Medici for seven years and have seen the line separating Medici patrons and Medici workers blurred, crossed, and reversed. I think that this is one the Medici’s attributes. People pass through but invariably come back.